2016 Annual Report

Carmen Ottmer, Chief Appraiser

AUSTIN COUNTY APPRAISAL DISTRICT | 906 E. AMELIA ST., BELLVILLE, TEXAS 77418
INTRODUCTION
The Austin County Appraisal District is a political subdivision of the State of Texas. The
Constitution of the State of Texas, the Texas Property Tax Code, and the Rules of the Texas
Comptrollers Property Tax Assistance Division govern the operations of the appraisal district.

MISSION
It is the mission of the Austin County Appraisal District (ACAD) to discover, list, and appraise all
property within the boundaries of the District as accurately as possible in order to estimate a fair
and equitable market value. The District will provide a well-managed office that will serve the
public giving the same consideration, information, and assistance to each customer, as well as,
provide up-to-date and accurate records to the taxing authorities.

The district will administer the laws under the Texas Property Tax Code and operate under the
standards of
The Property Tax Assistance Division of the Texas Comptrollers Office
The International Association of Assessing Officers
The Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practices

OVERVIEW
The Austin County Appraisal District is responsible for local property appraisal and exemption
administration for 16 jurisdictions or taxing units in the county. Each taxing unit, such as the
county, a city, school district, etc., sets its own tax rate to generate revenue to pay for such things
as police and fire protection, public schools, road and street maintenance, courts, water and
sewer systems, and other public services. Property appraisals and estimated values by the
appraisal district allocate the years tax burden on the basis of each taxable propertys market
value. The District also determines eligibility for various types of property tax exemptions such
as those for homeowners, the elderly, disabled veterans, charitable or religious organizations and
for agricultural productivity valuation.

ACAD is responsible for 656 square miles and 38,858 property accounts within Austin County.
Columbus Independent School District, Brenham Independent School District, and Burton
Independent School District have properties that over-lap into Austin County. ACAD is
responsible for the appraisal and exemption administration of those properties. These accounts
are included within the number of property accounts. Brazos Independent School District over-
laps into Ft. Bend County. ACAD is not responsible for the appraisal or exemption administration
of those properties. The accounts that are within Ft. Bend County are not included in the number
of property accounts.

ACADs required operations are outlined in the Texas Administrative Code and are monitored by
the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Except as otherwise provided by the Texas Property
Tax Code, all taxable property is appraised at market value as of January 1. Under the Texas

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Property Tax Code, Section 1.04(7), market value means the price at which a property would
transfer for cash or its equivalent under prevailing market conditions if: exposed for sale in the
open market with a reasonable time for the seller to find a purchaser; both the seller and the
purchaser know of all the uses and purposes to which the property is adapted and for which it is
capable of being used and of the enforceable restrictions on its use, and; both the seller and
purchaser seek to maximize their gains and neither is in a position to take advantage of the
exigencies of the other.

The Texas Property Tax Code defines special appraisal provisions for the valuation of residential
homestead property (Section 23.23), productivity (Section 23.41), real property inventory
(Section 23.12), dealer inventory (Sections 23.121, 23.124, 23.1241 and 23.127), nominal
(Section 23.18) or restricted use properties (Section 23.83) and allocation of interstate property
(Section 23.03).

TAXING JURISDICTIONS
The Austin County Appraisal District is responsible for appraising all properties for each of the
taxing jurisdictions that have territory located within Austin County. They are as follows:
Austin County
Bellville ISD
Sealy ISD
Brazos ISD
Brenham ISD
Burton ISD
Columbus ISD
City of Bellville
City of Sealy
Town of San Felipe
City of Brazos Country
City of Wallis
Austin County Emergency Service District #1
Austin County Emergency Service District #2
Austin County Emergency Service District #3
Bellville Hospital District

ACTIVITIES PERFORMED BY ACAD IN 2016

The appraisal process is an art, not a science. The appraised value of real estate is calculated
using specific information about each property. Using computer-assisted mass appraisal
programs and recognized appraisal methods and techniques, information is compared with the
data of similar properties and with recent cost and market data. The District, as required by the
state of Texas, follows the standards of the International Association of Assessing Officers (IAAO)
regarding its appraisal practices and procedures, and subscribes to the standards promulgated
by the Appraisal Foundation known as the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practices

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(USPAP) to the extent they are applicable. Chapter 23 of the Texas Property Tax Code contains
statutes dealing with appraisal methods and procedures. Section 23.01 of this chapter was
amended in 1997 to specify that appraisal districts are required to comply with the mass appraisal
standards of USPAP (Standard Six) when the appraised value of a property is established using
mass appraisal techniques.

The ACADs Valuation Process

In order to make a valuation, the staff must first identify new properties. This is done by viewing
aerial photography, scouring local government records such as building permits, or locating
advertisements in the newspaper.

The staff must then collect data by visiting new and existing properties. The staff assesses the
value of new structures, as well as assesses depreciation and the value of any new additions to
existing structures. Additionally, appraisers must classify the quality of the construction by
examining features such as rooflines, add-ons, construction type such as brick or wood, etc. Data
regarding sales and building prices must also be collected.

These values must be entered into the automated system along with changes in property parcel
sizes and exemptions received from homeowners, the elderly, disable veterans, charitable or
religious organizations, and agricultural productivity valuation (this includes property that
qualifies based on wildlife practices).

Then the data must be analyzed following the mass appraisal standards of the USPAP. Properties
are grouped by school district, subdivision, town and neighborhood. Questions such as does
the ACAD value match recent sales values? must be answered. Value is then assessed to as close
to 100% of market value as possible (per state law). If this is not the case, then an analysis must
be done to determine the reason the values are not in line. Once this is determined, further
adjustments are made according to existing professional standards.

Additionally ACAD must

Analyze and revise office operations to conform with legislative changes,
Compile and file reports required by the state,
Work with customers regarding concerns and appeals,
Prepare for state audits and inspections, and
Perform required community outreach.

ACAD had 15 full-time employees during 2016 with the following classifications:
1 Administrative Professionals
4 Appraisers
2 Administrative Support Professional
8 Clerical / Support Staff

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Note: Because the work is highly technical and closely regulated, appraisers and professionals
must obtain licensing and attend yearly training on legislative updates. Additionally, all staff are
required by the State of Texas to obtain yearly customer service training.

MINERAL, INDUSTRIAL, UTILITY AND RELATED PERSONAL PROPERTY

Mineral, industrial, utility and other related personal property is appraised by Pritchard & Abbott,
Inc. (P&A) at the fair market value by utilizing approaches such as the cost approach, market
approach, and income approach. The main source P&A uses for data collection is fieldwork by
the appraisers and commercially/publicly available schedules developed on current costs such as
Marshall & Swift, Handy-Whitman, Chemical Engineering Magazine, Oil & Gas Journal, etc. The
validity of the values by P&As income and cost approaches to value is tested against actual
market transactions, if and when these transaction and verifiable details of the transactions are
disclosed to P&A. These transactions are checked for meeting all requisites of fair market value
definition. Any conclusions from this analysis are also compared to industry benchmarks before
being incorporated in the calibration procedure.

PROPERTY TYPES APPRAISED

ACAD is responsible for the appraisal of just over 36,000 parcels. The following represents a
summary of property types appraised by the district for 2016:
PTAD Property Parcel Market
Classification Type Count Value
A Single Family 7,770 1,108,980,428
B Multi-Family 99 26,242,146
C Vacant Lots 1,551 39,803,614
D1 Qualified Ag Land 8,623 2,336,366,619
Farm/Ranch Improvements on
D2 1289 15,337,618
Qualified Ag Land
Residential Farm/Ranch
E1 3,752 716,912,968
Improvements on Qualified Ag Land
Manufactured Housing on
E2 451 12,833,032
Qualified Ag Land
E3 Non-Qualified Ag Land 845 48,480,371
Miscellaneous Improvements on
E4 11 278,637
Non-Ag Land
F1 Commercial Real Property 863 210,185,417
F2 Industrial Real Property 68 113,593,273
G1 Oil & Gas 11,975 17,835,380
J1 Water Systems 1 8,702
J2 Gas Distribution Systems 3 110,380
J3 Electric Companies 59 39,402,772
J4 Telephone Companies 46 8,779,069
J5 Railroad 45 62,891,420

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 J6 Pipeline Companies 153 58,997,604
J7 Cable Television Companies 5 298,660
J8 Other Types of Utilities 34 49,207,310
L1 Commercial Personal Property 1,245 76,254,961
L2 Industrial Personal Property 255 234,803,855
M1 Mobile Homes 1,698 34,495,677
O Real Property Inventory 59 1,276,009
S Special Inventory 21 9,323,391
X Exempt Property 844 151,048,298

GENERAL INFORMATION
2016 2015
Properties Inspected 4,766 5,815
Exemptions Processed 592 685
1-d-1 Applications Processed 662 581

INQUIRY AND FORMAL PROTEST DATA

2016 2015
Informal Appeals Processed 926 585
Formal Appeals Processed 1,635 958
ARB Decisions 310 81
Settlement & Waivers 923 626
Withdrawn Protests 214 77
ARB No Shows 160 147
Arbitration Cases 3 2
Litigation Cases 4 3

CERTIFIED VALUE FOR ALL JURISDICTIONS

At least 95% of the 2016 appraisal records were not under protest or review by the Appraisal
Review Board (ARB) as of July 26, 2016, therefore the ARB approved those records on that date.
Certification of the 2016 Appraisal Roll occurred on July 26, 2016 by the Chief Appraiser.
Certification statements were provided to each jurisdiction at that time. Copies of each of these
documents are available for review at ACAD.

The following table represents the values at certification:

2016 2015
Market Value Taxable Value Market Value Taxable Value
Austin County 5,103,178,522 2,726,106,832 4,835,851,941 2,591,150,811
Bellville ISD 2,829,409,595 1,182,832,774 2,665,005,744 1,127,260,504
Sealy ISD 1,944,632,209 1,141,527,463 1,862,731,855 1,082,385,773
Brazos ISD* 197,173,058 97,329,861 186,657,052 91,227,115
Brenham ISD* 39,890,078 11,910,224 40,703,330 10,751,731
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 Burton ISD* 742,019 221,555 794,537 191,010
Columbus ISD* 77,344,214 38,300,013 68,491,709 35,062,493
City of Bellville 268,536,559 262,403,184 258,405,407 253,648,380
City of Sealy 691,409,289 632,138,957 665,480,772 603,523,725
Town of San Felipe 102,756,591 83,412,524 98,102,293 81,698,536
City of Brazos Country 80,408,552 76,727,931 74,098,066 71,147,104
City of Wallis 56,042,662 50,459,157 49,888,133 47,467,759
Austin Co. ESD #1 460,016,253 307,791,780 423,141,888 283,168,767
Austin Co. ESD #2 1,270,816,866 903,629,984 1,230,122,904 882,340,140
Austin Co. ESD #3 197,322,343 110,920,908 186,790,027 104,978,506
Bellville Hospital Dist. 2,829,409,595 1,142,913,595 2,664,881,734 1,095,747,521

The following table represents the value under review as of certification:

2016 2015
Market Value Taxable Value Market Value Taxable Value
Austin County 127,683,072 80,262,773 32,532,747 15,292,560
Bellville ISD 69,086,816 39,902,799 14,678,870 7,144,684
Sealy ISD 53,602,889 31,856,475 17,342,940 7,367,344
Brazos ISD* 3,096,330 2,655,109 196,407 167,080
Brenham ISD* -0- -0- -0- -0-
Burton ISD* -0- -0- -0- -0-
Columbus ISD* 1,897,037 747,965 -0- -0-
City of Bellville 13,084,711 12,841,070 3,295,609 2,528,955
City of Sealy 23,676,675 16,529,888 9,045,068 4,238,839
Town of San Felipe 2,605,776 2,321,443 -0- -0-
City of Brazos Country 5,837,333 5,581,197 814,902 659,123
City of Wallis 2,692,840 2,560,080 179,530 138,100
Austin Co. ESD #1 11,515,052 10,214,778 1,235,634 1,063,755
Austin Co. ESD #2 35,467,603 21,002,569 12,904,424 5,263,551
Austin Co. ESD #3 3,096,330 2,911,430 196,407 167,080
Bellville Hospital Dist. 69,086,816 37,563,054 14,678,870 6,941,468
*Includes only that portion which is situated in Austin County.

AVERAGE VALUE OF SINGLE FAMILY RESIDENCE

2016 2015
Market Value Taxable Value Market Value Taxable Value
Austin County 163,290 149,943 147,617 138,099
Bellville ISD 179,774 145,065 160,023 130,837
Sealy ISD 156,449 95,403 143,706 86,899
Brazos ISD* 98,572 61,349 91,879 57,632
Brenham ISD* 209,320 175,200 194,194 164,051
Burton ISD* 9,602 -0- 8,322 -0-

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 Columbus ISD* 160,602 123,892 144,231 115,331
City of Bellville 157,073 151,933 149,378 145,095
City of Sealy 130,562 123,403 121,738 116,178
Town of San Felipe 124,015 112,504 105,717 101,073
City of Brazos Country 359,297 350,148 319,700 315,069
City of Wallis 94,868 85,324 84,896 80,924
Austin Co. ESD #1 186,441 172,611 166,667 157,284
Austin Co. ESD #2 141,498 131,408 132,417 123,158
Austin Co. ESD #3 98,871 84,990 92,157 81,386
Bellville Hospital Dist. 179,774 133,605 160,023 122,233
*Includes only that portion which is situated in Austin County.

CERTIFIED NEW VALUE FOR ALL JURISDICTIONS

2016 2015
Market Value Taxable Value Market Value Taxable Value
Austin County 52,075,133 49,068,184 50,460,664 47,133,524
Bellville ISD 27,057,623 22,161,058 24,679,080 19,212,780
Sealy ISD 23,089,125 12,095,002 22,058,291 12,357,831
Brazos ISD* 976,723 314,667 2,203,553 1,340,031
Brenham ISD* 418,138 375,738 473,468 370,068
Burton ISD* -0- -0- 1,833 1,833
Columbus ISD* 533,524 414,724 1,044,439 894,439
City of Bellville 1,480,887 1,395,887 1,907,792 1,765,792
City of Sealy 6,893,230 6,551,880 6,253,802 5,983,802
Town of San Felipe 843,517 828,517 639,742 602,742
City of Brazos Country 4,139,591 4,139,591 2,393,624 2,393,624
City of Wallis 382,213 361,153 753,307 738,307
Austin Co. ESD #1 8,190,443 7,922,213 6,733,899 6,396,868
Austin Co. ESD #2 12,152,157 11,178,727 13,268,578 12,348,838
Austin Co. ESD #3 976,723 811,233 2,203,553 2,033,603
Bellville Hospital Dist. 27,057,623 19,437,652 24,679,080 16,931,307
*Includes only that portion which is situated in Austin County.

EXEMPTIONS FOR ALL JURISDICTIONS

ACAD is responsible for administering the exemption applications filed by property owners. The
following represents the number of exemptions granted (local option and state mandated) and
the value lost for 2016 as of certification. A complete list is available at ACAD along with a
comparison of the prior year.
Disabled Disabled
Homestead Count Over 65 Count Person Count Vet** Count
Austin County 37,671,097 7,793 20,407,989 3,039 0 0 7,779,450 212
Bellville ISD 86,792,103 3,683 14,897,163 1,559 601,027 76 3,384,959 108
Sealy ISD 183,661,814 3,411 10,295,834 1,089 591,133 75 2,095,607 40

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 Brazos ISD* 16,259,085 584 1,683,926 183 144,585 18 953,049 17
Brenham ISD* 627,710 28 135,300 10 0 0 12,000 1
Burton ISD* 18,307 2 0 0 0 0 0 0
Columbus ISD* 2,582,297 110 535,502 59 10,000 1 12,000 1
City of Bellville 0 0 1,945,212 393 0 0 1,182,147 29
City of Sealy 0 0 4,428,280 449 0 0 1,066,984 34
Town of San Felipe 0 0 405,050 86 20,000 5 438,285 8
City of Brazos Country 0 0 0 0 0 0 22,000 2
City of Wallis 0 0 367,146 129 0 0 896,754 12
Austin Co. ESD #1 4,186,006 868 2,024,185 304 0 0 639253 18
Austin Co. ESD #2 11,236,139 2,309 4,956,005 737 0 0 1,868,852 57
Austin Co. ESD #3 2,733,173 577 1,328,555 204 0 0 1,228,049 17
Bellville Hospital Dist. 127,859,755 3,665 15,521,019 1,616 633,618 80 3,961,774 113
*Includes only that portion which is situated in Austin County.
**Includes the 100% Disabled Veterans Exemption (Section 11.131(b) of the Property Tax Code) and the Disabled
Veterans or Survivors Exemption (Section 11.22 of the Property Tax Code)

Pollution
Abatements Count Control Count Freeport Count Other Count
Austin County 13,112,595 5 8,599,554 5 0 0 144,768 1
Bellville ISD 0 0 140,950 0 0 0 144,768 1
Sealy ISD 0 0 8,458,604 4 0 0 0 0
Brazos ISD* 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Brenham ISD* 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Burton ISD* 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Columbus ISD* 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
City of Bellville 0 0 0 0 0 0 144,768 1
City of Sealy 13,112,595 5 7,459,884 3 0 0 0 0
Town of San Felipe 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
City of Brazos Country 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
City of Wallis 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Austin Co. ESD #1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Austin Co. ESD #2 0 0 8,458,604 4 13,226,988 3 0 0
Austin Co. ESD #3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Bellville Hospital Dist. 0 0 140,950 1 0 0 144,768 1
*Includes only that portion which is situated in Austin County.

2016 STATE OF TEXAS OVERSIGHT

The Property Value Study (PVS)
The PVS is a biennial audit by the Texas State Comptroller of Public Accounts Property Tax
Assistance Division (PTAD). PTAD conducts the PVS to estimate a school districts taxable
property value. ACAD underwent a Property Value Study for 2016. The results released January
31, 2017, indicated that ACAD was outside the confidence interval by approximately 4% for the
entire County. Each school district (ISD) has an opportunity to appeal PTADs determination, if
they so choose. Any ISD still outside the confidence interval after an appeal will undergo another
PVS for 2017. The ISDs are in year one of the grace period and State funding is not affected. The
previous two Property Value Studies, 2012 and 2014, indicated that ACAD was appraising at

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market value and that PTAD accepted the appraisal district values for all school districts in the
County.

Methods and Assistance Program (MAP) Reviews

Property Tax Code Section 5.102 requires that the Comptroller of Public Accounts Property Tax
Assistance Division (PTAD) reviews county appraisal district (CAD) governance, taxpayer
assistance, operating standards, appraisal standards, and procedures and methodology at least
once every two years. ACAD was reviewed for 2015. The report for 2015 was released January
22, 2016, which indicated that ACAD passed all the Mandatory Requirements. ACAD received a
Meets All rating of 100 in the areas of Governance, Taxpayer Assistance, Operating Procedures,
and Appraisal Standards, Procedures and Methodology. A copy of the full report is available for
inspection on our website (www.austincad.org), at ACADs office, or on the Comptrollers website
at https://www.comptroller.texas.gov/taxes/property-tax/map/2015/index.php. ACAD will be
reviewed by PTAD for 2017.

LEGISLATIVE CHANGES
ACAD will continue to administer the new laws that were a result of the 84th Legislative session
held in 2015. Bills that relate to the property tax system are closely monitored and implemented.

ACAD AND THE FUTURE

ACAD expects operating expenses to rise in the coming years based on population growth and
increased state regulatory mandates. An additional staff member was added in 2016 to allow for
an additional data entry clerk. It is ACADs intention to continue with the implementation of an
in house scanning project of certain documents in the property files to provide more office space
by reducing filing cabinets. An aerial photography project was started in December of 2016. Once
completed ACAD will review any changes in properties that may not have been reported to our
office.

While technology can assist ACAD in locating and evaluating new properties and changes to
existing property, a personal inspection is ultimately necessary.

Population Growth
The estimated population for Austin County as of January 1, 2016 is 30,609 according to the Texas
Demographic Center at The University of Texas at San Antonio published December 2016. From
2000 through 2015, the population of Austin County increased from 23,590 to 30,609 a 29.75%
increase.

The population increased 20.5% from 2000 through 2010. At the same rate of migration, the
Austin County population is expected to reach approximately 36,542 by 2020.
(Data retrieved February 6, 2017 from http://demographics.texas.gov/Resources/TPEPP/Estimates/2015/2015_txpopest_county.pdf and
http://factfinder2.census.gov/faces/nav/jsf/pages/community_facts.xhtml and http://demographics.texas.gov/Data/TPEPP/Projections)

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Population growth, in turn, brings new dwellings and increased business activity. In fact, the
United States Census Bureau, in their 2011-2015 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates,
indicates that there were approximately 12,978 housing units in Austin County, with 2,794 being
built between 2000 and 2009, 291 being built in between 2010 and 2013, and 42 being built in
2014 or later.
(Retrieved February 6, 2017 from http://factfinder.census.gov/faces/nav/jsf/pages/community_facts.xhtml)

Please contact the appraisal district if you have any questions regarding this report at:

Austin County Appraisal District

906 E. Amelia St.
Bellville, Texas 77418

Phone: (979)865-9124
Fax: (979)865-3296
Website: www.austincad.org
Email: austincad@gmail.com

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